Portable water treating apparatus



c&. 15, 1935.

A, GUDMUNDSEN PORTABLE WATER TREATING APPARATUS Filed May 10, 1933Fflier Ber! Acfz'ua fed Carbon I N VEN TOR.

Patented Oct. 15, 1935 UNITED STATES ATENT OFFICE 6 Claims.

The invention relates generally to water treating apparatus and moreparticularly to portable water treating apparatus.

The object of the invention, generally stated,

is to provide a water treating apparatus that is simple and efficient inoperation and that may be readily and economically manufactured.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide a portable watertreating apparatus that 10 may be readily carried to any locality foruse in the providing of a supply of palatable pure drinking water.

It is also an object of the invention to provide portable water treatingapparatus that may be utilized under all ordinary conditions withoutdanger of contaminated Water entering the pure water chamber.

The invention accordingly is disclosed in the embodiment thereof shownin the accompanying drawing and comprises the features of construction,combination of elements, and arrangement of parts, which will beexemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope oftheapplication of Which will be indicated in the claims.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the invention,reference may be had to the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawing, in

which:

Figure l is a view in vertical section of a water treating apparatusconstructed in accordance with the invention; and

Figure 2 is a view, partly in section and partly in top elevation,showing details of the structure.

Referring now to the drawing, and Figure l in particular, the watertreating apparatus comprises a container H! which may be made from anysuitable material which will meet the conditions to be found in thelocalities in which the water treating apparatus will be utilized. Formost purposes I prefer to use a No. 26 gauge galvanized copper containertinned on the inside.

The container should be made from heavy gauge metal so that it willstand a certain amount or rough usage without any danger of leaksoccurring. The size of the container will depend on the amount oftreated water that it is required to draw off in a predetermined periodof time.

In order to facilitate the pouring of the water,

a spout ii is provided. In this particular embodiment of the inventionthe spout is formed integral with the container. The forming of thespout in this manner is desirable since there are no seams formed, alongwhich cracks may occur.

- As shown, a flap or lid E2 is hinged to the container and covers thespout l I so that there is no danger of water or other extraneous matterentering the container. The hinge will be mounted so the lid willnormally rest on the spout, thus 5 maintaining it closed under allconditions except when pouring the water.

A receptacle [3 for raw water is disposed in the upper end of thecontainer. While this receptacle is shown spaced slightly from thecontainer 10 wall for the purpose of illustration, in practice it wouldbe made a fairly tight fit.

A downwardly curved flange I4 is provided on the upper edge of thereceptacle. This flange extends outwardly far enough to fit over theupper 15' edges of the container. As shown, the flange l4 supports thereceptacle l3 on the container and receives the receptacle cover l5. Asillustrated, the receptacle cover extends over the flange and is rolledaround its outer edge. 20 The outer portion of the cover l5 and theflange M extend downwardly beyond the upper edge of the containerproviding something in the nature of a water shed. Thus when the watertreating apparatus is being filled with raw water orex- 25 posed to rainand the extraneousmatter normally found in the atmosphere, there is nodanger of them entering the container.

In order to provide access to the receptacle I3, it is provided with anopening I6. A cap I! is 30 provided for closing this opening and engagesan upwardly extending threaded neck is formed integral with the coverl5. Thus when the receptacle is filled with raw water, it may be carriedwithout danger of spilling and it is also 35 protected from collectingextraneous matter that may be in the air.

Many methods may be provided for transporting the portable watertreating apparatus. The embodiment illustrated is one that may be car-40 ried and so a bail I9 is provided and attached to the container bymeans of lugs in the manner of mounting a bail on a pail.

In order to treat the water, filter beds are employed. In thisparticular instance, two filter 5 A beds are utilized, one an activatedcarbon filter bed and the other a germicidal filter bed. There are anumber of materials available on the market for making the germicidalfilter bed. The one which the applicant proposes to use is a substancesold under the trade-name of Sterolite. The germicidal filteringmaterial known as Sterolite is a carrier such as a zeolite on whichsilver is deposited in minute particles. The carbon filter bed will bemade from finely com- 5 minuted carbon and may be readily procured inthe market.

In order to properly locate the filter beds between the raw waterreceptacle and the container, I provide a filter barrel 2%] whichdepends from and communicates with the raw water receptacle IS. ASillustrated, the upper end of the filter barrel 20 is provided with anoutwardly extending flange which seats on the bottom of the receptacleand is soldered thereto forming a water-tight joint. The lower end ofthe barrel is closed by means of a cap 2 I.

A plurality of filter supports shown generally at 22 are mounted in thefilter barrel. Each filter support comprises a rigid perforated plate 23and a screen 24. The plate isstrong enough to support the filter bed andthe screen prevents any interchange of materials between the filterbeds.

Seals 25 are provided between the barrel and the edges of the two lowerfilter supports. These seals are preferably made from some suitablepitch which will adhere to the filter barrel. Many such materials areavailable. This seal prevents water from seeping down the side of thefilter barrel. It has another advantage in that it may be readilyremoved in the process of refilling the filter barrel with new filterbeds.

The upper filter support is provided for preventing the washing of thecarbon particles out of the filter bed when the filter is beingsubjected to a cleansing or reactivating process. This filter support isretained in position by means of a snap ring 26 which engages in acircumferential depression 21 provided in the upper end of the filterbarrel 20.

The lower filter support 22 is disposed only a short distance from thecap 2| providing a small Water chamber. A standpipe 28 communicates withthis water chamber. The standpipe may be connected to the water chamberin any suitable manner and in this instance it is shown extending intoit and is soldered to the container making a water-tight joint. Thestandpipe is long enough to extend above the second filter support sothat it will maintain the water level above the germicidal filter bed.

Many of the germicidal materials employed in making filter beds when drymay crack and thus provide channels through which raw water mightpenetrate and thus enter the container before being properly treated. Instructures of this kind, it is desirable that the standpipe establishingcommunication between the filter barrel and the container be long enoughto maintain the water level in the filter barrel above the germicidalfilter bed.

The receptacle l3 and the filter barrel 29 are preferably made from No.26 sheet copper tinned on the inside, while the standpipe 23 andperforated plates 23 are made from tinned copper. Many other metals maybe employed, but the sheet copper tinned on the inside and the tinnedcopper have been found satisfactory.

A detailed explanation of the functioning of the activated carbon filterbed and the germicidal filter bed will not be given since this is wellknown. It will suffice to state that the activated carbon filter bedwill remove materials which are apt to give water a rancid andunpalatable taste, while the germicidal filter bed will destroy thebacteria that is often found in drinking water.

In using the water treating apparatus after the filter beds have beenplaced in position, raw water is poured into the receptacle through theopening It. It gradually percolates through the filter bed and entersthe container through the standpipe 28. A fiow of water through thestandpipe will continue until the water level in the filter barrel hasreached approximately the top of the spout. Water may be readily pouredfrom the container through the spout I I.

After the filter beds have been in use for some time they may becleansed by forcing a cleansing solution therethrough in the reversedirection. A solution of common salt has been found suitable for agermicidal filter bed such as Sterolite. The solution flowing throughthe carbon filter bed will set the particles in motion and this will besufficient to bring about what is known as a reactivation.

Since certain changes may be made in the above invention and difierentembodiments of the invention made without departing from the scopethereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the abovedescription or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted asillustrative and not in a limiting sense.

'It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended tocover all of the generic and specific features of the invention hereindescribed and all statements of the scope of the invention which, as amatter of language, may be said to fall therebetween.

I claim: 30

1. A portable water treating apparatus comprising, in combination, acontainer to receive the treated water, a receptacle carried by thecontainer for receiving the raw water, a filter barrel depending fromthe receptacle into the container, a plurality of filter supportsdisposed in the filter barrel, a bed of germicidal filtering materialcarried by the supports, seals between the edges of the filter supportsand the barrel, and a standpipe extending from the lower end of thebarrel upwardly to a point above the filtering material to maintain awater level above the body of filtering material.

'2. A portable water treating apparatus comprising, in combination, acontainer to receive the treated water, a receptacle to receive the rawwater, .a filter barrel communicating with the receptacle to receive theraw water and depending into the container, a plurality of filtersupports disposed in the barrel, seals between the edges of the filtersupport and the barrel, a germicidal filter bed provided in the lowerend of the barrel, an activated carbon filter bed in the upper end ofthe barrel, and a standpipe communicating with the lower end of thebarrel and extending to a height above the germicidal filter bed tomaintain a water level in the filter barrel above the germicidal filterbed.

3. A portable water treating apparatus comprising, in combination, acontainer to receive the treated water, a receptacle to receive the rawwater carried by the container, a filter barrel communicating with thereceptacle and tightly connected thereto depending into the container,

a filter support spaced from the lower end of the barrel providing awater receiving chamber, a germicidal filter bed carried by the filtersupport, a second filter support disposed above the germicidal filterbed, an activated carbon filter bed carried by the second filtersupport, and a re- 7 movable filter support disposed above the activatedcarbon filter bed for retaining the carbon in position when subjected toa fiow of water in either direction and a standpipe outside the filterbarrel for discharging the water from the filter 7 bed, said standpipeextending upwardly to a point above the filter bed to maintain a waterlevel in the barrel above the filter bed.

4. A portable water treating apparatus comprising in combination, acontainer for receiving the treated water, a receptacle carried by thecontainer for receiving the raw water, a filter carrier disposed betweenthe container for the treated water and the receptacle for the rawWater, a germicidal filter bed in the filter carrier, a discharge meansfor receiving the water from the germicidal filter bed, the dischargemeans extending upwardly to a point above the germicidal filtering bedto maintain the body of the filtering material wet.

5. A portable water treating apparatus comprising, in combination, acontainer, a spout formed in the side of the container, a cover for thespout hinged to the container, a receptacle for raw water disposed inthe upper end of the container, a flange provided on the receptacle toextend over the upper edge of the container, the flange serving tosupport the receptacle and cooperating to close the container andprevent the entry of raw water, a barrel depending from the raw waterreceptacle, a germicidal filtering material in the barrel, and astandpipe extending upwardly and terminating above the top of thefiltering material, said standpipe being disposed outside the barrel fordischarging the filtered water and maintaining a water level in thebarrel sufiicient to keep the filtering material wet.

6. A portable water treating apparatus comprising, in combination, acontainer, a spout formed in the side of the container, a cover for thespout hinged to the container, a receptacle for raw water disposed inthe upper end of the container, a flange provided on the receptacle toextend over the upper edge of the container, the flange serving tosupport the receptacle and cooperating to close the container andprevent the entry of raw water, a barrel depending from the raw waterreceptacle, a germicidal filtering material in the barrel, and meansoutside the barrel for discharging the filtered water, said dischargemeans extending upwardly to a point above the germicidal filteringmaterial to maintain a water level in the barrel above the body of thefiltering material wet.

AUSTIN GUDMUNDSEN.

